Gamble
by Whowhatwhyhow
Summary: A complete stranger is stuck on the Thousand Sunny for a few weeks and is taught just how incorrect the rumors and papers are.
1. Asylum

It was those damned Marines that got him into this mess. Usually, they only dealt with pirates, but Winged Isle was, despite the name, a very boring island. It was small and unimportant, with very little tourist attraction; the rivers that seemed to take flight and come crashing down to pools that were many feet below had long since dried up after years and years of drought. The residents were simple-minded and careless-hell, they hadn't even known that the mysterious "flying rivers" were, in fact, very large waterfalls. It was a perfect haven for one desperate to escape the horrors of the past. Or so he thought.

But no, he regretfully repeated past errors and was in the same situation as before, only this time with the lack of a boat. There was no escape and the Marines were closing in.  
Suddenly, a lion appeared. His heart stopped for a split second and he bit back a shriek of surprise and he realized it wasn't a lion. At all. It looked more like a sunflower, to be exact, carved out of wood and expertly painted in bright colors. He had no idea how he could have mistook such a thing for a wild beast in the first place.

The sunflower, of course, was the figurehead for a brightly-colored, friendly-looking ship. Its massive sails were furled and it bobbed gently with the lapping waves that had never become violent enough to damage the aged wooden docks.

He could hear the shouts of advancing Marines and decided to take a gamble. The ship's rope ladder was conveniently freed, and so he scurried up quickly and braced himself for an attack that never came. The deck was completely empty, which meant that he was safe for the time being. He watched the halfwitted Marines approach and then dash past, and his neck was saved, finally out of danger, because those dumbass Marines didn't know _shit_-

But they did not, in fact, dash past, but instead came to a screeching halt and stared up at his ship in bewilderment, which then morphed into mixed emotions of horror, anxiety, and further confusion. The lieutenant in charge recovered quickly and spun on his heels to face the others. He barked out what could only be assumed as orders, pointing frantically to a vague southward direction. He and his comrades fled, only two remaining.

Perplexed, he did a double take of his new asylum. Oddly enough, there was green grass growing on the deck, as well as some sort of orange tree. The main mast loomed above him, atop that a crow's nest, with the fluttering flag of a skull with a straw hat resting on the top. There were several doors, one of which likely led to a galley, another the living quarters of the ship's inhabitants. Stairs led up to a deck where the helm resided.  
And so, he was on a pirate ship. The Strawhats' pirate ship to be exact.

He had heard of them, of course; unlike the average resident of Winged Isle, he was actually concerned with the current events that rattled the Grand Line like a storm. He knew ambiguously of what happened at Alabasta, the severity of their actions at Enies Lobby, their crushing, utter defeat at Sabaody Archipelago(a stunning victory for the marines), the captain's suicidal but successful infiltration of Impel Down, and the subsequent reappearance of the pirates a full two years later. Hell, everybody knew who they were, and that they were all mindless and merciless. He would likely, if not definitely, be killed if he were to be discovered as a stowaway.

Nonetheless, he loved freedom, and the mere thought of jail was enough to make his lips curl downwards with distaste. He would, really and truly, rather die than be locked up.  
He opened a door and started his search for an unused room to take refuge in.

* * *

After the initial surprise of learning that the islanders of Winged Isle were vegetarian, and then the wave of mind-blowing shock and horror when he learned what that was, Luffy claimed the island to be boring and that they should take off as soon as the Log Pose was set. Nami didn't necessarily mind; Sanji and Chopper had likely finished their shopping for ingredients and supplies, and the small, family-run shops were doubtful to hold anything of interest to Usopp or Franky. Nami had lost any regard for the island when she realized that they had their own form of currency. One-hundred beri was equivalent to three of their pretty, but worthless tin chips. She could barely stand to give her crewmates(minus Zoro and Luffy, who had been chosen to keep watch over the Sunny) their shares of her money to go shopping. Oh, the sacrifices she made for this crew.

Nami really didn't have much room for complaint, however. She was unbelievably grateful that Usopp had managed to keep Luffy distracted for as long as he did before Nami decided on the route, choosing out of three the needle that didn't seem to be moving at all. When their course was set, Nami reported to Luffy that they were heading towards the next island, who cheered loudly, leapt up from his sitting position where he had been listening to his sniper's new epic, and catapulted to the Sunny's figurehead, where he waited eagerly for hours for the first sight of land. Winged Isle was so small and insignificant compared to the other New World islands that it was pure, raw luck that her Log Pose picked up on its minuscule magnetic field at all.

The only drawback of her captain's decision was the tooth-grinding, hair-pulling frustration of the task to round up the rest of the Strawhats. Luckily, Zoro should still be back at the ship, which saved her a good hour or two of tedious searching.

_Unless he wandered off the ship just as Luffy had_, Nami realized murderously. He was already to be fined for not making sure the captain stayed on board the Sunny at _all costs_ like he had been firmly instructed. If he wasn't on board when she got back, he was going to have _hell_ to pay for if he ever found his was way to the ship. If Zoro was gone, then no one was present to guard her valuable treasure, and that was absolutely unforgivable.

Nami wasn't sure if she would be able to contain her fury if there wasn't at least one person at the ship by her arrival.

* * *

**PLEASE feel free to point out any mistakes that I have made. When I transferred this document over, I lost any of the formatting that I had done, so I did a shitty job of re-formatting the chapter before excitedly and childishly publishing it right away before doing any thorough read-through.**

**Welp. The first chapter of my first story! The plot will be somewhat loose because I'm not going to focus on our dear stowaway's story for the most part; this will mostly be about rumor vs reality as it refers to the Strawhat pirates. This is mainly a trial for my writing skills and what I need to improve on before I start on any better-thought-out fics.**

**Anyway, the next chapter will include a great deal of Nami shrieking and beating Zoro's sorry ass down. Until next time!**


	2. Tranquil

**And so, the ever-professional writer uploads the first chapter and proceeds to be grounded for a week. Whoops.**

**Seriously typed this up in like an hour.**

* * *

Zoro knew exactly where he was going. He had not been looking for a bar like Usopp wanted to believe-he was _sightseeing_, because contrary to popular belief, his life did not, in fact, revolve around drinking(although he _could_ go for some sake. _Damn_ that shit was good). Maybe Zoro had been keeping an eye out for a bar, maybe he hadn't. To hell if he would tell Longnose.

The swordsman had been cough-_sightseeing_ when he ran into the sniper, who had been very shocked to find Zoro not on the ship as he had been assigned. Zoro shrugged, saying he was bored and that Luffy's constant chattering had interrupted his nap. Usopp panicked, declaring that Nami would mount Zoro's head on the wall in the galley to serve as a reminder to the others to never disobey her again. After a few more minutes of his overdramatic shrieking, Zoro finally submitted and headed back to the ship with Usopp. And _no_, he had _not_ started walking in the wrong direction; he knew a shortcut to get back to the ship from all of his sightseeing.

Usopp continued to screech at every suggestion Zoro gave all the way back to the Sunny.

* * *

After each crewmate had been given their respective shares of allowance, they set off to shop. Chopper left with Robin in search of a bookstore, Franky and Brook had decided to wander the streets and see if anything seemed interesting, and Usopp had run off in alarm when he realized that Sanji was already speeding away in pursuit of two unfortunate young women. Chopper figured that, as always, the women would either reject him with polite nervousness or flee in absolute terror. Robin remarked amusedly that the cook seemed to have been cursed with horrible luck at charming and the reindeer silently agreed. Someone seemed to have a great time toying with Sanji.

The island had only one small bookstore, located in a dilapidated wooden building. Chopper was unable to find anything of use, though he found Robin an interesting book on the history of Winged Isle. When he presented it to her, she gave him a genuine smile and praised that he was skilled at gift-giving. The doctor assured her firmly that he did not need her opinion(an onlooker may have been able to say that he was wriggling about in joy, but Chopper would deny any observation on the matter). Figuring that the others would have similar luck in any endeavor to collect supplies, Robin suggested that they return to the ship. Chopper agreed and they headed back.

Winged Isle was very tranquil. Chopper doubted that any of the other Strawhats would get into any trouble.

* * *

Sanji was in a great deal of trouble. He had been buying the best wine offered for his beautiful _mellorines_(and, he supposed, some sake for the bastard swordsman) when he noticed a fine young lady enter the shop. He paid for the liquor and whirled gracefully on his toes to ask the angelic woman her name and stopped dead when he heard a low whistle made by two men that had been hanging by the door. One leaned over and not-so-whispered something in his companion's ear that made Sanji's blood boil.

He crossed the distance in one stride and ended the clash just as quickly as it had been started. The two marines were unconscious before their heads even hit the floor. The young miss seemed to have misinterpreted his good intentions and took off with a fearful shout before he could utter a heroic(read:cheesy) word.

It was then that Sanji did a double take. The two shitheads that he had just taken out were dressed in marine attire and both carrying guns. He could hear shouts and footsteps just outside of the store. The young lady probably mistakenly informed the marines that a small conflict had broken out. If the marines saw who he was, the crew may be unable to depart safely and quietly as his dear Nami-san had instructed.

In fact, he could hear the shitty marines knocking on the doors of other buildings nearby.

Well.

..._Well._

_Shit._

* * *

**PLEASE feel free to correct any mistakes that I've made.**

**I lied. Zoro will be getting his beat-down next chapter. We will also be presented with the last two Strawhats, and then the actual fun will begin!**  
**Special thanks to Ezaria that reminded me that I needed to rewrite my summary!**

**I'll try to update again this weekend, but please don't hold this statement over my head. :}o**


	3. Antics

Franky had little faith that his captain would remain on the ship. He didn't care much either way, because he couldn't blame the guy; they had been sailing for a few weeks without any sign of land, and as much as he loved the Sunny, Franky felt himself yearning for the feel of grass underneath his feet at the first sight of Winged Isle. Luffy had gotten a little stir-crazy towards the end of their travel and started creating all sorts of trouble. After a specific incident that had led to a handful of the crew being pitched overboard, Nami, still dripping wet and absolutely livid in her fury, decreed that he would be staying on the ship.

Zoro had been nominated to stay with Luffy after a failed attempt at strangling the boy sent both the navigator and the captain hurtling over the rails once more. Franky, concerned with the ship's wellbeing when he noticed the crew's antics splintering the deck, was tempted to stay behind and fix the damage. A quick check-over proved that the Thousand Sunny was still just as strong(_super)_ as it has always been, and the repairs only took a few minutes. He was just leaving the ship when he noticed that Brook was playing his violin by himself, so he invited the skeleton to tag along for some window shopping.

Franky hadn't been able to find anything of use. He was usually able to turn scraps into amazing machinery, but Winged Isle was barren of anything of the sort. Frankly, he was bored to shit, and anything would've been a welcome change.

Which was why when he first caught sight of Sanji sprinting from a horde of marines, he simply grinned and took aim.

* * *

**PLEASE feel free to point out any mistakes that I've made. Franky is a very hard character for me so I hope I don't mess up his character too bad.**

**I was really, truly meaning to add more to this chapter, but I never felt like getting to work, so I figured that I might as well post whatever shit I had already written. The next chapter will be more exciting(I hope) and longer(I promise).**

**Ezaria: Yeah, all of the Strawhats are assholes, and I mean that with all of the love in the world. I find it surprising how Luffy and Zoro are the only ones that cause conflict whenever they get to an island. I could see Nami with her thieving problem or Usopp with his lies causing equally as much trouble as those two.**


	4. Disaster

Usopp prided himself on his capability to keep calm and wheedle himself out of even the most dire of situations. He very rarely had to resort to violence, and when he did, his methods were clean and civilized, unlike the savage pleasure that usually emanated from Zoro during a fight(and, Usopp had to admit, Robin occasionally seemed to enjoy herself when she was breaking spines and causing mayhem). He supposed this was a particular skill that was specific to only him, for the mass of approaching marines that seemed to be in pursuit of three very familiar people could only mean that one of them, once again, had failed Nami's strict command to stay unnoticed.

Usopp wouldn't have minded as much if he hadn't spotted the anticipated gleam in Zoro's eye. Bravely throwing himself in front of the swordsman to prevent further disaster, he used his most authoritative voice to instruct the man to _not start any more trouble because he wanted to make it to the next island with as many limbs as he had been born with._

"Eh? Get the hell out of my way! Those guys shouldn't be a problem to you," Zoro growled.

"Of course they won't! I am the great Usopp-sama, conqueror of the sea! Why, as a matter of fact, once I traveled to a land of ogres, and defeated them all with one mighty-"

"Usopp."

"Ah, well...yes. It's not the marines I'm worried about! What do you think Nami's going to do to me if she learned that I was fighting when she told me not to? What do you think she's going to do to _you?!_" Zoro's scowl faltered for a split-second as he registered Usopp's words.

The marines and their crewmates were still advancing at breakneck speed; Usopp was able to make out a few _yohohos_ over the thundering footsteps. He was running out of time to convince Zoro to _stand the hell down, dammit._

"Look!" he shouted. "Sanji is with them! He shouldn't have any trouble dealing with those guys! There's got to be something more important going on! Maybe there's someone strong that they're facing!"

Whoops. Zoro made a face that could only be the bloodthirsty, cocky grin that Usopp had become so unfortunately accustomed to. Using the word _strong_ was a bad choice. A _very _bad choice. The swordsman drew his swords, clamping _Wadou_ in between his teeth and drawing into an offensive stance.

Usopp was ready to duck and cover, diving out of the way of whatever deadly attack he would unleash, undoubtedly wreaking absolute havoc on the unlucky marines-

"Get out of the goddamn way you_ shitty swordsman_ before I _kick your face in!_" Usopp was tempted to clasp his hands together and thank God himself for Sanji's intervention. He turned to find that, predictably, the two were fighting.

The sniper's gratitude vanished and he shouted, "Stop fighting! We need to get back to the sunny!" He didn't bother to ask _why_ Sanji had been attempting to escape from the Marines; it was likely something that involved Nami that he didn't care to listen to.

"_Ow!_ I agree," Franky added as he and Brook dashed past, the Marines still in hot pursuit. The skeleton's laugh resounded through all of the noise, his sprinting still as odd as ever. Zoro and Sanji did not cease their arguing, however they did start to jog alongside the shipwright and musician, swearing and taunting with the occasional fast-as-lightning kick or slash aimed for a certain curly eyebrow.

Usopp, just as skilled as ever in the art of fleeing, led his crewmates as well as the shouting Marines back to the Thousand Sunny.

* * *

Nami and Luffy arrived at the ship to find Chopper and Robin already boarding. Nami threw herself at the archeologist, wailing about how hard had been to steer Luffy through the nearly-empty streets. Robin simply smiled, patted her head sympathetically, and helped her onto the ship.

"Oi, Nami," Luffy said absently, pinky finger shoved casually up his left nostril as he leapt aboard the Sunny, "I gotta tell you somethin'."

"You shut up!" came her angry reply. The navigator had already laid herself on a lawn chair but at her captain's voice she rose. "I practically had to drag your ass the entire way over here because you kept wandering off! I don't want to hear another word out of your mouth!"

"But _Nami_," Luffy whined. He wasn't able to continue when the thief's fist disappeared into his face. The captain was knocked out of the ship and back onto the wooden docks. Chopper squealed in alarm and hid behind the main mast(the wrong way, of course). Robin simply chuckled and opened her new book on Winged Isle.

Nami put her head in her hands in exasperation and sank once more to her chair. "I want some peace and quiet before the other idiots come back! Is that too much to ask for?"

She was answered almost immediately by Luffy's whooping.

"Hey, look! Everyone's coming back! And they brought friends!"

* * *

**PLEASE feel free to point out any mistakes that I have made.**

**Do I think that I went a little overboard with the italics? Nah.  
Not at all.**

**I apologize for the shortness of the previous chapter. I promise that each chapter, from now on, will be at least 900 words long.**

**Anyway, the next chapter will include all of the Strawhats as well as a hell of a lot more arguing. Things will become interesting in a few chapters.  
Zoro will get his beat-down sooner or later.**


	5. Anxiety

When Usopp finally caught sight of the happy lion/sun/flower figurehead for the Thousand Sunny, he very nearly cried in relief. They had all been running for a long time, and the marines were still just as determined as ever. If that wasn't bad enough, Zoro was getting increasingly agitated by the unfamiliar feeling of choosing flight over fight. Usopp wondered what that felt like. He figured it wasn't pleasant, judging by the way the swordsman's jaw was clenched tight and his knuckles pale with the force of his grip on his white _katana_. While his reluctance to increase his debt to Nami above the already soaring height he had achieved as well as the fact that he had made a promise not to cause a scene was keeping Zoro's frustration and apparent bloodlust at bay, he figured they might've only had a couple of more minutes before the man finally snapped and held his swords against the marines - or even worse, Sanji.

Usopp occasionally wondered about what actions he might have done in the past to deserve such crazy and anxiety-inducing crewmates. Usually, he absolutely loved telling Luffy lies-tales, he meant _tales_, and pulling pranks on Zoro and Sanji, but there were also days where he wished the trio weren't so inhumanly _strong_ so that he could throttle them a little.

This day was more like the latter.

The Sunny had only just appeared in the distance for a moment and he could already hear Luffy shouting and Nami shrieking. He figured that Robin and Chopper were also back, reasoning that maybe the archaeologist had managed to quell the murderous rage that Nami had likely attempted to unleash. Luffy sure didn't sound like he had been beaten half to death. Yet.

Either way, with all of the crewmates back at the ship(or running towards it), they should be able to manage to make their escape without creating much trouble. Usopp sped up, hoping that Luffy would be able to dispatch of the annoying marines with his weird intimidation thing that Robin had briefly mentioned. Hockey, he believed, or a name similar.

The sharpshooter shouted for Nami to set off and for Luffy to hang back. He hoped that their navigator wouldn't be as angry when she learned that they had no other choice but to fight back, and that they had at least tried to avoid a confrontation. He doubted that she would be glad that the marines had followed them back to the ship, but maybe he could at least attempt to explain before the inevitable attempted murder.

Luffy leapt cheerfully from his perch on the figurehead and starting walking towards them. With each step, his expression became less childish and more hostile. He looked almost...menacing. Usopp had already witnessed Luffy's power a few times, but he never quite got used to it; it really was a sight. His captain looked threatening and nearly like he was concentrating, although Usopp knew that focusing was an impossibility to Luffy. His eyes widened for a split second, pupils dilating and suddenly the air felt unnaturally chilling. All of the non-Strawhats fell to the ground, unconscious. Zoro grunted his approval and Brook remarked about how he felt relief straight to his bones(insert high-pitched _yohohos_).

"_Ow! Super_ good job, Strawbro!"

"Yes, yes. Good effort, team, you acted exactly as planned!" Usopp couldn't help but beam at how well his crew worked under his supervision.

"Shut it, Longnose, you just didn't want to fight."

"No, I just figured that I should allow someone else to take the glory for once. You know, I once defeated a feared admiral of the marines. I believe his name was Squa-"

"_Move_, dumbass." Zoro shoved Usopp off of his foothold on the side of the ship so that he could board. Chopper flitted about, checking for injuries, and Robin casted her eyes around the deck before returning to her book with a smile. Nami stomped over to stand in front of Zoro, her light-colored eyes like fire as he addressed him.

"And _why_ weren't you on the ship looking after _him_?" she growled, jerking a thumb over at Luffy, who was bouncing his way back over to the Sunny's figurehead.

The man simply blinked, responding angrily. "I was bored, and he was getting on my nerves. I left to go for a walk."

"Then why did Luffy leave?!" Nami challenged, voice rising in volume.

Now Zoro looked dumbfounded. "He left? That _idiot_." Usopp didn't really understand how the swordsman was surprised; he was actually more astounded that he hadn't seen such a thing coming.

"Yes, Luffy left, and I caught him prancing around on the streets _all alone_! Do you know what could have happened if I hadn't seen him? We would still be looking right now! And what the hell was with all of those marines?! Didn't I tell you guys to _not cause any trouble?!"_

Zoro had already settled into his spot and closed his eye. Opening it again, he regarded Nami with little lazy interest. "Why don't you go ask the shitty cook over there? He was the one that picked the fight."

_So long, Sanji-kun. It was nice knowing you._ Usopp took his place next to Chopper and hid behind the main mast(the _correct_ way, he might add). Chopper saluted the brave cook, tears streaming down his furry face.

The navigator's fist connected with his jaw and Sanji and he was was sent spiraling into Brook, who laughed loudly and nervously in response._ "And just why did you pick a fight with the marines, Sanji-kun?" _Usopp could imagine the face of an angry demon to match her tone.

"W-well, you see, Nami-swan-"

"Oi, guys, we've got trouble!" Franky shouted at the helm. "Marine ships at three o'clock!"

"We will finish this later," Nami hissed, glaring at each of her crewmates before shouting orders to the shipwright and her captain.

* * *

"I'm going to need a long bath after today," Nami commented, rubbing her temples furiously. She was sitting on the deck along with Sanji, Brook, a sleeping swordsman, and Luffy, who was only there to beg the cook for some meat.

"I can help you, if you'd like, madame," Brook offered creepily, sipping merrily on some tea. The cup clattered to the floor an instant later after a kick from Sanji(Like hell, you shitty skeleton!") sent the skeleton crashing through the wall. The cook, apparently oblivious to his sudden nosebleed, turned to enter the galley when he stopped short and frowned.

"I'm going to the cartography room to make a map of Winged Isle," their navigator said absently, turning to leave.

Luffy stopped his pestering for a moment to look at her with an odd expression. "Uh, Nami, I wouldn't do that."

"Oh?" she retorted threateningly. "And why not?"

"There's some stranger down there. I dunno what he's doing."

The deck was completely silent except for the occasional snores coming from a particular green-headed idiot.

* * *

**PLEASE feel free to point out any mistakes I've made.**

**Anybody want to know why our stowaway hasn't been given a name yet? It's because I haven't thought of one. Woot woot.**

**Who's italics-happy? Definitely not me.**

**Thanks to everyone that reviewed! They help me not be as lazy.**

**ANYWAY, heads will roll in the next chapter. Until next time!**


End file.
